Minnie seemed taken aback, but only for a moment. "No," she barked. "No, no, no. A thousand times no."

Hawk pressed gently on the pad of cloth over the wound on Teige's back, making sure it didn't wiggle. Something bright blue landed on his knuckle with a soft plip.

"We said no hitchhikers," Minnie insisted. "Especially ones that can't pass for human."

The noise that had been flowing from Hawk's nose and mouth had gotten thicker, heavier, more like an actual liquid than whatever weird sheen of light it had been before. It� was also, he found, now dripping out of his ears--and it hissed, louder and louder. Minnie jabbed a finger past Parker at him.

"Now tell the halfbreed and his furry girlfriend to hit the road."

Hawk rubbed his nose and more of the noisy stuff came away on his hand. He stared at it, eyelids heavy, and said loudly over the hiss of static, "Teige ain't a girl."

Parker and Minnie both turned to look at him.

"We'll get off your god-damn bus," Hawk continued irritably, and pushed himself up, trying to stand, "Just gimme a s-sec--"

Trying to stand up was a mistake--the noise rushed up in his ears, filling his skull.

"Don't be like that, kid," Parker said easily somewhere beyond the howling sound, "We're all friends here. Y'all are heading for Enodia too, ri--"

She broke off. The sound got louder, and her and Minnie's faces got blurrier. Their voices slurred, like a badly tuned radio. The color faded out, and the noise rose until it snapped off into blackness.